Military
Military Branches
The military is comprised of 12 branches: five active duty and seven part-time duty.
CLICK HERE for a full list of the military options and enlistment process.
Army:
SGT Jacob J Newton
Evanston Recruiting Center
(847) 903-6230
Email: jacob.j.newton2.mil@mail.mil
Army National Guard:
SGT Lesley Camarema
Recruiting & Retention NCO, Schaumburg
(630) 669-0640
Email: lesley.a.camarena-reyes.mil@army.mil
Army ROTC:
Eric L. Ashworth, GS
Assistant Professor of Military Science & Scholarships and Enrollment Officer
Army ROTC Department
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
505 East Armory Avenue, Room 114
Champaign, IL 61820
Phone: 217-265-6857
Email: eashwort@illinois.edu
Marine Corps:
Sgt Demos, Matthew G.
Lake County Marines
Work Phone: (773) 619-8047
Personal: (224) 358-6575
Email: matthew.demos@marines.usmc.mil
Navy "talent scout":
QM2 (SW) JaCorey Miller Sr.
NTAG Great Lakes
TAOC Chicago
Division 1 Talent Scout
Office: 847-259-9550
Cell: 262-282-3002
E-mail: jacorey.miller@navy.mil
Navy ROTC:
LT Mitch Evans
Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) Naval ROTC
312.567.8963
NROTC@iit.edu
Air Force:
John R. Pippin, SSgt, USAF
US AIR FORCE RECRUITER
347th Recruiting Squadron
658 West Route 173
Antioch, IL 60002
Office Ph: 847-875-3097
Cell Ph: 847-875-8111
E-mail: john.pippin@us.af.mil
Moctar Sana, SSgt, USAF
US AIR FORCE RECRUITER
6170 W Grand Ave, Suite 121
Gurnee IL 60031
Ph: 224-406-5406
E-mail: moctar.sana.1@us.af.mil
Terrance M. Hammond, TSgt
JFHQ IL Air National Guard Production State Recruiter
Cell: 217-622-5054
E-mail: terrance.hammond@us.af.mil
Coast Guard:
Lauren Shields
United States Coast Guard
Recruiting Office Chicago
5523 N. Cumberland Ave. #1201
Chicago, IL 60656
Work Cell: (847) 626-5113
Email: Lauren.A.Shields@uscg.mil
Enlistment Requirements
There are a few requirements to join (or enlist) in the military. You must:
Be 18 (17 with parental consent).
Be a U.S. citizen or resident alien.
Have a high school diploma (preferred), but a high school equivalent such as the GED may be accepted.
Take the ASVAB test (offered through military recruiting offices) to determine job placement. Each job and each service requires a different score. The best source of this information is a recruiter.
Pass a physical fitness exam. Some jobs may have additional requirements.
Full Time/Active Duty
Active duty is a similar time commitment to working at a full-time civilian job.
Active-duty service members live on base or in military housing and are immersed in military culture.
After attending boot camp, recruits are stationed at a base either domestically or overseas.
Active-duty soldier's terms typically last two to six years. The length of deployment varies depending on a unit's specific mission.
Part-time service options fall under two types: Reserve and National Guard.
Part-time service members attend boot camp and train one weekend a month and two weeks a year, allowing them time to pursue a civilian career or college.
Reserve
Reserve Components are part-time service members who maintain trained units at home while active-duty service members are deployed.
Each active-duty branch of the military has a reserve component under their command, which is available for active-duty deployment in times of war or national emergency.
Some active-duty service members switch to the reserve to finish out their service commitment.
National Guard
The National Guard are part-time service members whose main focus is on homeland security and humanitarian relief.
Units help communities in their state during emergencies like storms, floods, fires and other natural disasters.
The two National Guard branches, Army National Guard and Air National Guard, have one organization for each state and additional US territories (ex: Illinois National Guard) that report to that state’s governor.
National Guard service members deployed overseas may see combat, but are also assigned noncombat humanitarian tasks, such as building schools and hospitals, training local peacekeepers and other community-building projects.
ROTC
ROTC stands for Reserve Officer Training Corps. It’s a college program offered at over 1,700 colleges and universities across the United States that prepares young adults to become officers in the U.S. Military. In exchange for a paid college education and a guaranteed post-college career, cadets commit to serve in the military after graduation. Each Service branch has its own take on ROTC.
CLICK HERE for more information.
READ this quick article about the difference between an ROTC scholarship and the Service Academies (discussed below).
Military Academies
For students who want to experience a military environment while getting a college education, the five service academies offer a fully-funded tuition that includes books, board and medical and dental care.
These are the five service academies that students can apply to:
Navy - United States Naval Academy
Air Force - United States Air Force Academy
Merchant Marines - United States Merchant Marine Academy -
Coast Guard - United States Coast Guard Academy
Deerfield High School
The process of applying for nominations and applying to the Service Academies takes concentration, attention to detail, and following the prescribed timeline strictly.
Meet with your postsecondary counselor early in the Spring of Junior year to prepare the necessary materials to apply for your nominations to the multiple elected officials, ROTC programs and summer programs.
Make sure you request teacher recommendations 2nd semester of Junior year from two teachers, one in mathematics and one in science.
Students applying for the US Service Academies are encouraged to apply to ROTC programs. Since ROTC students will receive financial aid and a commissioned officer rank, it is important to have this as a backup plan. (Please refer to the ROTC program page on the CCRC for more info)
Nomination Process
Before students can apply to the Service Academies, students will need a nomination from an elected official, during the Spring of Junior year.
Apply to the 2 IL senators, your Congressional representative & the Vice President. If you are NOT nominated through any of these competitive processes, you could still be placed on a national wait list.
Nominators evaluate candidates during the summer and make decisions in early fall. Applicants need to visit each official’s website for specific nomination instructions & timelines.
Once you have submitted your nomination applications, apply to each Service Academy application through their website.
Chicago Area Service Academy Nominators
IL Senators – apply to both Senators
https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/IL
IL Representatives - nomination should be from your district
The Vice President
It is also possible to receive a nomination from someone who is serving or who has served in the US military.